The indie film festival known as Sundance, just recently came to a close. After an action-packed ten days, the festival finally ended with its award ceremony on Saturday, Jan. 31.

Sundance began in 1985 and is continuously growing with more and more participating filmmakers and reaching a greater worldwide audience with each year. This year, the festival was held in Park City, Utah starting back on Jan. 22.

With it being a showcase for both American and international filmmakers, Sundance not only supports independent storytellers, it allows a place where creativity can flow and connect with thousands of people.

President and founder Robert Redford once wrote, “Sundance deepens the resolve of artists, bringing them together in a creative community so that they know they are not alone.”

Participants can submit films in a variety of genres, including: dramas, documentaries, new frontier, shorts, and more.

This year, several awards were won for things like best director, best editor, and best cinematographer. Some of the biggest awards and honors won were the U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic and U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Documentary.

The film “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, won the U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic. This film was a coming-of-age film with the main character, Greg, an awkward high school student who befriends Rachel, a classmate who has been diagnosed with leukemia and the moments they go through together.

“Thank you again. This movie was about processing the loss and celebrate the life of a beautiful man, my father,” later revealed Gomez-Rejon at the award ceremony.

The film “The Wolfpack” directed by Crystal Moselle, won the U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Documentary. This work was based on creativity, imagination,family, and honesty. The Angulo brothers (nicknamed The Wolfpack) re-create their favorite childhood movies while learning to grow and be apart of society, yet stick together at the same time.

“Life is surreal,” stated Moselle when accepting her award. “I don’t even know what to say right now. I stalked those kids [The Wolfpack] on the street one day and here I am.”

The films shown at Sundance are definitely unlike any other. Some might call them unusual or quirky and they would probably not be shown at your local AMC or Regal.

Sam Macaluso, a 22-year-old sociology major, noted some of the assets and opportunities Sundance provides.

“Sundance is beneficial for young directors,” said Macaluso. “It’s good for society because they show films that wouldn’t necessarily be in regular theaters.”

Viewers of the films are also left with a unique cultural balance, especially because of the amount of international films shown throughout the long week.

Kali Pichler, a second semester child development major, and a past French student of four years commented on the variety of foreign films showcased at Sundance and the benefits of them.

“A lot of times there are foreign films playing and it’s giving us the opportunity to experience different cultures,” said Pichler. “We get several different interpretations of comedies, of romances, etc.”

Many noted celebrities, including actors and directors like George Lucas, James Franco, and Brad Pitt were among the crowd, mingling with other actors, directors, and audiences, and there to enjoy the wide variety of films available for viewing.

Sundance is scheduled to take submissions of films for 2016 opening in June with a $40 entry fee. The festival will continue with its 31st year next January in Utah.

To conclude the festival, Sundance’s official twitter account left its followers with a last farewell tweet.

“You came. You watched. You got 10 Days of Different. You’re the best audiences in the world. Let’s do it again next year? January 21-31, 2016.”